Imposition
by piccolabimba
Summary: Kenshin's unit imposes on the Kamiya Dojo during the Bakumatstu.
1. Kaoru

The Kamiya Dojo had been commandeered for the night by a group of Choshu Ishin Shishi soldiers.

6 -year-old Kaoru sat stiffly in a small interior room of the Kamiya Dojo. Her father had put her there, along with a shinai and small lantern, as soon as the soldiers had started banging on the gate, telling her to be quiet and wait for him to come get her. If anyone found her, she was to scream and head for the secret panel in the floor.

The sounds of rough men filled the house as she crouched next to the panel, clutching the wooden sword. It was dim in that room, the only light coming from the small lantern at her feet, in arm's reach. She crouched there for a long time, endlessly, it seemed, breathing as quietly as possible. Perhaps they would leave soon. Finally, the door silently slid open. Her small moment of relief was quickly replaced with terror as it did not reveal her father.

The small light at her feet glinted off of a long tail of blood-red hair and a slighter figure than her tall, strong, reassuring father. He carried the daisho of a swordsman. Kaoru opened her mouth to scream as instructed and jumped up, shinai in one hand, light in the other. No scream came, it was frozen in her throat. The man gazed at her for a heartbeat before putting a finger to his lips in a gesture of silence and silently slid the door shut Kaoru sank tobher knees and nearly dropped the lantern, gasping for breath.

Why hadn't she been able to scream? What if he came back? Where was her father? All these questions were tinged with fear as they swirled through her mind. She backed against the wall where it met the edge of the secret floor panel and wedged her fingers into the latch. The panel swung down like a door revealing a tunnel under the house. She dropped in, taking the light and sword with her. She shut the door most of the way, allowing a small gap, then she crouched down again.

Some time later, the door opened again and fear gripped her throat. Then, she heard her father's reassuring voice call for her in a soft voice.

"Kaoru, you can come out now, my little flower."

She peeked out of her hiding place to see her father with a tray and light. Dinner! Her tummy growled and she climbed out.

"I'm so glad its you, father, and not rhat other man with the red hair!"

Her father looked at her in surprise and something else she wasn't sure of.

"Someone found you?"

"Yes, a man with red hair and daisho. He saw me, then left."

"Is that why you were in the floor?" she nodded.

"Yes. To hide." He set down the bowl and chopsticks he held.

"Why didn't you yell, like I told you?" Her father's level gaze made her wiggle and her cheeks started to get hot.

"I tried to, Father, really! But... no sound came out." Tears welled up in her eyes. Moments later, his big arms were around her.

"Come now, you did nothing wrong. It sounds like you were frightened by one of the men looking around. I know the one you mean, the one with red hair. He is quite intimidating, but I think he is one of the nicer ones here. I wish I didn't have to leave you here, my darling, but we have guests." He wiped her last tear. "I wanted you to hide because I don't know about these men. Here's an idea. Why don't we finish eating and then go back to my room? We can both sleep there tonight." Kaoru agreed that it was a good plan and they finished the meal quietly. Then her father picked up the tray and motioned for her to follow him out the door.

When they arrived at his room undetected, he tucked her into his futon with a smile. "This is a good place for you, dearest." He pointed to the door that opened to the house. I will be right there until I come to bed, so you sleep in peace, daughter." The warm voice, warm hands, and warm blankets soothed her nerves as she settled into a trusting sleep, her father just beyond the door.


	2. Kenshin

Imposition

Kenshin's unit imposes on the Kamiya Dojo during the Bakumatstu.

**Kenshin**

Kenshin leaned against a post on the engawa, looking over the tranquil garden. He hated this. Imposing on this family as the group passed through Edo. They tried to stay at inns, but it wasn't an option tonight, so they had invaded this dojo. He knew why the commander had chosen it. The dojo had more space than most places and seemed to house on the master. It was somewhat fortified and in a residential area. Kenshin rested his face in his palms, recalling to mind the horrified, frightened face of the tiny girl he had found. He had been ordered to search the house for useful supplies. The master, Kamiya, must have hidden his daughter when he had heard them banging on the gate. She was terrified but resolute, shinai clutched in her hands. She would make a fine swordswoman someday.

It was wrong, stealing from this dojo, even if for the cause. A crime that would without a doubt be overlooked as a necessity and therefore not really a crime. He wrestled with that. He knew why Kamiya had hidden his daughter – and it made him a little sick. Why would a respectable man, a dojo master, want his small daughter to be around the rough crowd?

The shoji to the main room was thrown open and one of his peers staggered out, calling to him with a loud, drunken voice.

"Battousai! Whatcha doin'; out here by your lonesome?!" He dropped himself down on the porch, feet dangling over the edge, nearly empty bottle of sake (no doubt taken from the dojo's small supply) in hand. He offered it to Kenshin who brushed it away.

"You all make me sick. This is a private house, not a free for all. You are treating our forced host badly."

"What bee went up your nose?" He was suddenly belligerent, as drunk men can be. "I'm sure he's honored to host soldiers, fighting for his freedom. Besides, one old man in this big house, what else would he use it for?" Kenshin stood. At least the others hadn't found out about the little girl hidden in the house.

"Leave me be. I will not be part of this shame." He turned and walked away, trying to ignore the slurred response behind him.

"Hypocrite, I don't see you sleeping in the street!"

The sooner they left the Kamiya Dojo, the better.


	3. Koshijiro

Imposition

Kenshin's unit imposes on the Kamiya Dojo during the Bakumatstu.

**Koshijiro**

Koshijiro surveyed the carnage left over from the troop's night in his house and dojo. He was thankful that they had moved on early that morning after using the last of his rice supply for breakfast. It seemed that they had slept all over – one even finding his way to Kaoru's room. He shuddered and was glad she had been in his own room and guarded all night. The strange red-haired samurai had kept watch outside the bedroom door, on the garden side, although it was not obvious that was what he was doing. He sat leaned against the post outside the bedroom door and redirected the drunk men away from the room, careful to never give away why. He was grateful for that, at least.

Koshijiro sighed as he brought in the laundry bucket and started piling in the dishes and sake bottles that strewed the room. He had known there was no way to keep them from staying the night. A little destruction and supply depletion weren't worth his life and Kaoru's exposure. The red-haired one, the others called him Battousai, thanked him that morning for their unstoppable stay and in a quiet voice, apologized for the mess and imposition. The others had said nothing, simply leaving behind the outcome of their time there.

Kaoru sleepily stumbled into the room, her eyes widening in shock at the scene. "Father, what happened?" He smiled at the small girl.

"Well, my flower, our guests had to leave early this morning. Let's clean this up and then go to the market to buy some breakfast. The faster we clean the sooner we eat!"

"I will be the speediest cleaner in all of Japan!" she cried, before swooping down to the table and grabbing a handful of chopsticks and brandishing them towards her father. He chuckled at her exuberance. Her resiliency would benefit her in the future.


	4. Meiji

Imposition

Kenshin's unit imposes on the Kamiya Dojo during the Bakumatstu.

**Meiji**

"Kamiya, Kamiya," Kenshin mused as he followed his new landlady back to the dojo. "Kamiya Dojo…" Why did it sound so familiar? Usually one to remember names and faces, especially those he had wronged, for some reason that name echoed in his mind. The dojo, the name. He had this strange sense that he had been here before, heard that name before. But when? As he leaned against a post on the engawa and looked out over the garden, he continued to ponder. The door to the main room opened and his hostess stepped out, smiling. She carried a small tray of tea, which she set down beside him.

"Kaoru-dono, this one has a strange feeling that he has been here before, but cannot imagine when." She frowned in thought.

"I have always lived here; I would remember if you ever came…" she trailed off as the sun set and the twilight resembled lamplight. The fading light reflected off his red hair and she felt a little nudge in her memory. He waited. "One time, when I was quite small, a group of soldiers commandeered the house for a night. It was terrifying. My father hid me in the house, but one found me."

Kenshin set down his tea rather more forcefully than necessary, causing the liquid to splash a little over the side of the cup. "He had red hair, like you. That's what reminded me just now." She shook off the memory, smiled and sipped her tea. "Childhood memory always seems exaggerated or distorted. Who knows what actually happened?"

Kenshin could only nod agreeably as that night flooded to mind and the little girl he had tried to watch over in her sleep, the terror in her resolute face. The night his regiment had stormed the Kamiya Dojo. And now he was back here, in the same place, with the same girl, ten years later. Hopefully more welcome than the first time. There was still so much atonement to be done. Would he ever be out from under the burden of his crimes?


End file.
